New Edible Packaging Material with Function in Shelf Life Extension: Applications for the Meat and Cheese Industries.

Roxana Gheorghita Puscaselu,Liliana Norocel,Gheorghe Gutt,Sonia Amariei

doi:10.3390/foods9050562

Roxana Gheorghita Puscaselu, Liliana Norocel + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/foods9050562

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Abstract

Nowadays, biopolymer films have gained notoriety among the packaging materials. Some studies clearly test their effectiveness for certain periods of time, with applicability in the food industry. This research has been carried out in two directions. Firstly, the development and testing of the new edible material: general appearance, thickness, retraction ratio, color, transmittance, microstructure, roughness, and porosity, as well as mechanical and solubility tests. Secondly, testing of the packaged products—slices of cheese and prosciutto—in the new material and their maintenance at refrigeration conditions for 5 months; thus, the peroxide index, color, and water activity index were evaluated for the packaged products. The results emphasize that the packaging is a lipophilic one and does not allow wetting or any changes in the food moisture. The results indicate the stability of the parameters within three months and present the changes occurring within the fourth and fifth months. Microbiological tests indicated an initial microbial growth, both for cheese slices and ham slices. Time testing indicated a small increase in the total count number over the 5-month period: 23 cfu/g were found of fresh slices of prosciutto and 27 cfu/g in the case of the packaged ones; for slices of cheese, the total count of microorganisms indicated 7 cfu/g in the initial stage and 11 cfu/g after 5 months. The results indicate that the film did not facilitate the growth of the existing microorganisms, and highlight the need to purchase food from safe places, especially in the case of raw-dried products that have not undergone heat treatment, which may endanger the health of the consumer. The new material tested represents a promising substitute for commercial and unsustainable plastic packaging.

Highlights

The demand for food has increased steadily due to the modernization and growth of the population.Packaging is an important stage in the food industry, being responsible for maintaining the products’quality and freshness, during transport, storage, and handling until consumption [1]
The Principal component analysis (PCA) method limited all data into two main components covering 100% of the variability (PC1—99.81% and PC2—0.19%)
The results indicate that the film did not facilitate the growth of the existing microorganisms, taking into account the small differences during this time

Summary

Introduction

The demand for food has increased steadily due to the modernization and growth of the population.Packaging is an important stage in the food industry, being responsible for maintaining the products’quality and freshness, during transport, storage, and handling until consumption [1]. The demand for food has increased steadily due to the modernization and growth of the population. Packaging is an important stage in the food industry, being responsible for maintaining the products’. The packaging materials used are multilayer types—complex, difficult to sort, and impossible to recycle—since they are based on plastic. The use of these packages has become unstoppable, precisely due to plastic’s ability to protect the packaged product. Problems arise when packaging is obtained from non-renewable resources that consume and pollute the environment, endangering the health of humans and animals as well. Several efforts have been made so as to extend the shelf life of food products and overcome the environmental problems of wasting packaging at the same time.

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Conclusion